Seven events Illawarra residents can visit from their lounge

Here's seven low-cost or free ways to keep yourself busy through lockdown with a major musical festival, a virtual boat show, children's workshops, cooking and dance classes, plus a film festival.

Virtual Boat Show

In lieu of the Sydney Boat Show being cancelled due to lockdown restrictions, Multihull Central are instead hosting a an online event on Saturday July 31 to give people a "personalised virtual tour" of the boats that may be of interest.

Yachting consultants will take people on a walk through of their newest models of catamarans and yachts, with detailed explanations of features and design, pricing information and production availability.

The company is asking people to register through their website for a guided tour, www.multihullcentral.com.

Music Festival

With Byron Bay's Splendour in the Grass cancelled for a second year in a row, organisers moved the two-day festival to a virtual stage in cyberspace.

Music lovers of any age can still catch artists like The Killers, Khalid, Chvches, Charli XCX, Vance Joy, The Avalanches, Band of Horses, Tash Sultana and many more on demand through the SplendourXR website until Monday August 1.

Tickets for the virtual show is AUD$19.99 through www.moshtix.com.au

Learn to Cook

Every Friday night the crew from For the Love Of (FLO) are sharing skills via Facebook Live on how to cook a budget friendly meal (though you can watch their videos at anytime).

Friday July 30, the team's youngest member will be teaching other mini-chefs and big-chefs how to make a delightful meal. Last week Alex Hitchens delighted his audience with a fish curry.

Dance Masterclass

The Sydney Dance Company has joined with Medibank to get you off the couch and on the dance floor once a month through Facebook.

Catch a 45 minute dance class on Wednesday July 28 from 7pm with jazz aficionado Ramon, or the next one is Wednesday August 25.

Film Festival

The Melbourne International Film Festival will be available to stream straight to lounge rooms around the nation from August 14 to 22.

From dramas, documentaries, thrillers and dramas, stay in your pyjamas and watch some fine films via their website: https://play.miff.com.au/

Some highlights include:

Freshman Year - It follows a 23-year-old endearingly awkward freshman who's missing his tight-knit Texas family and struggling to make friends on campus. Locked out of his room one night, he finds himself hooking up with his resident advisor Maggie, who's a year older and much more self-assured and blasé. Originally titled Shithouse, this dreamy hang-out romance is anything but - it beguiled critics at various festivals and is American indie filmmaking at its most charming.
Set! - The world of competitive table-setting is ruthless - it's a serious competitive pursuit. Their elaborate, innovatively themed creations reveal their artistry; sometimes, they even make bold statements. And as nine competitors prepare for the Orange County Fair - considered the 'Olympics of table-setting' - the pressure is on to position themselves as the finest of their kind around.
Dry Winter - The story follows the life of a young couple in a small town that lies between the ocean and outback in regional South Australia. Their portrait unfolds in a hypnotic fashion, as the film explores the unknown and underrepresented world of rural Australian life, taking place throughout a harsh drought that has desiccated an agricultural landscape that traditionally thrives in winter months.
Come Back Anytime - Food lovers won't be able to resist this tantalising story of a master ramen chef and his legendary Tokyo noodle shop. For more than four decades, self-taught master chef Masamoto Ueda and his wife have run the Tokyo noodle bar Bizentei.
Bandar Band - Three young musicians set out for a career-making gig in Tehran, planning to enter a battle of the bands. They are fuelled by hope and excitement as much as by petrol, but they only have a day to get there and flash flooding across the country has turned most roads into rivers.

FLASHBACK: Some mums and their bubs enjoying time at the Early Start Discovery Space in 2017. Picture: Robert Peet

Early Start Discovery Space

If the children are climbing the walls they can at least settle in for 30 minute sessions from superhero school, LEGO activities looking at mathematics and graphing, puppets and robots and suitable for kids aged four and up.

The Discovery to You workshops are one-on-one Zoom sessions at a cost of $12.50 each.

Otherwise the centre also has an array of free videos from storytime to backyard colour hunts, to keep the kids busy at home.

www.earlystartdiscoveryspace.edu.au

Picture: Yesterday Stories

Self Guided History Tour

Get some exercise and learn some of the deep dark secrets of the Illawarra with the Yesterday Stories app.

From ghost stories to mine disasters, a growing music scene at the old Oxford Tavern to migrant stories, download the app then plan a stroll around some of the stories in your area or do it from your couch.

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Seven COVID-safe events Illawarra residents can visit

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